US8927851B2 - Solar cell module and method of manufacturing solar cell module - Google Patents

Solar cell module and method of manufacturing solar cell module Download PDF

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US8927851B2
US8927851B2 US13/683,131 US201213683131A US8927851B2 US 8927851 B2 US8927851 B2 US 8927851B2 US 201213683131 A US201213683131 A US 201213683131A US 8927851 B2 US8927851 B2 US 8927851B2
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solar cell
cell module
tab
electrodes
electrode
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US20130125951A1 (en
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Toshiyuki Sakuma
Haruhisa Hashimoto
Satoshi Tohoda
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Sanyo Electric Co Ltd
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Sanyo Electric Co Ltd
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Assigned to SANYO ELECTRIC CO., LTD. reassignment SANYO ELECTRIC CO., LTD. ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). Assignors: HASHIMOTO, HARUHISA, TOHODA, SATOSHI, SAKUMA, TOSHIYUKI
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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
    • H01L31/04—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices
    • H01L31/042—PV modules or arrays of single PV cells
    • H01L31/05—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
    • H01L31/04—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices
    • H01L31/042—PV modules or arrays of single PV cells
    • H01L31/05—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells
    • H01L31/0504—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells specially adapted for series or parallel connection of solar cells in a module
    • H01L31/0508—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells specially adapted for series or parallel connection of solar cells in a module the interconnection means having a particular shape
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
    • H01L31/04—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices
    • H01L31/042—PV modules or arrays of single PV cells
    • H01L31/05—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells
    • H01L31/0504—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells specially adapted for series or parallel connection of solar cells in a module
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
    • H01L31/04—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices
    • H01L31/042—PV modules or arrays of single PV cells
    • H01L31/05—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells
    • H01L31/0504—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells specially adapted for series or parallel connection of solar cells in a module
    • H01L31/0512—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells specially adapted for series or parallel connection of solar cells in a module made of a particular material or composition of materials
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
    • H01L31/04—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices
    • H01L31/06—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices characterised by potential barriers
    • H01L31/068—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices characterised by potential barriers the potential barriers being only of the PN homojunction type, e.g. bulk silicon PN homojunction solar cells or thin film polycrystalline silicon PN homojunction solar cells
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
    • H01L31/18—Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment of these devices or of parts thereof
    • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
    • Y02E10/00—Energy generation through renewable energy sources
    • Y02E10/50—Photovoltaic [PV] energy
    • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
    • Y02E10/00—Energy generation through renewable energy sources
    • Y02E10/50—Photovoltaic [PV] energy
    • Y02E10/547—Monocrystalline silicon PV cells

Definitions

  • the invention relates to a solar cell module and a method of manufacturing a solar cell module.
  • a solar cell module has a configuration in which a plurality of solar cells are connected in series or parallel by wiring members electrically connected with electrodes on front and back surfaces of the solar cells.
  • soldering is conventionally used to connect the electrodes and the wiring members of the solar cells with each other.
  • the soldering is widely used because being excellent in conductivity and connection reliability such as fixing strength, and having inexpensive and versatile characteristics.
  • a wiring connection for a solar cell without using soldering has been also considered to decrease heat affect during the process of connecting a wiring member.
  • a method of connecting a solar cell with a wiring member by using an adhesive film having a resin adhesive see, for example, Patent Document 1).
  • a wiring member is connected with an electrode of a solar cell by a resin adhesive in such a manner that the wiring member and the solar cell are heated while being pressed against each other with the adhesive film disposed between the wiring member and the electrode of the solar cell.
  • a solar cell module in which a bus bar electrode formed on the surface of the solar cell is buried in a wiring member in order to prevent the electrode and the wiring member from peeling off each other (for example, Patent Document 2).
  • the wiring member is provided with a soft conductor layer, such as soldering, around a copper foil so that the bus bar electrode can be buried easily.
  • the solar cell module described in Patent Document 2 has sufficient electrode-peel strength, but is still required to enhance the reliability under thermal cycles.
  • the invention provides a solar cell module including a plurality of solar cells connected with one another by connecting electrodes formed on surfaces of neighboring solar cells by wiring members, wherein a portion of the wiring members bites the electrodes and the solar cells and the tabs are bonded with each other by a resin.
  • the invention includes the steps of: forming an electrode on a surface of a solar cell; disposing a wiring member on a resin disposed to cover the electrode, the wiring member being to be connected with an electrode formed on a surface of a neighboring solar cell; and heating the solar cell while applying pressure in a direction toward the solar cell from above the wiring member, and thereby causing a portion of the wiring member to bite the electrode.
  • the surface of the wiring member is harder than the surface of the electrode.
  • FIG. 1 is a plan view of solar cells in a solar cell module according to an embodiment
  • FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing a solar cell according to the embodiment.
  • FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view showing that tabs are bonded to a solar cell in the embodiment.
  • FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the A-A′ line in FIG. 1 .
  • FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view in the embodiment.
  • FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing that a tab is bonded to a solar cell in the embodiment.
  • FIG. 7 is a schematic plan view showing that a tab is bonded to a solar cell in the embodiment.
  • FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view in the embodiment.
  • FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view in the embodiment.
  • FIG. 10 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing that tabs are bonded to a solar cell in the embodiment.
  • FIG. 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing that tabs are bonded to a solar cell in the embodiment.
  • FIG. 12 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing that tabs are bonded to a conventional solar cell.
  • FIGS. 13A , 13 B, 13 C, and 13 D are schematic views showing how to bond tabs according to the embodiment.
  • Prepositions such as “on”, “over” and “above” may be defined with respect to a surface, for example a layer surface, regardless of that surface's orientation in space.
  • the preposition “above” may be used in the specification and claims even if a layer is in contact with another layer.
  • the preposition “on” may be used in the specification and claims when a layer is not in contact with another layer, for example, when there is an intervening layer between them
  • FIG. 1 is a solar cell module according to the embodiment.
  • the solar cell module includes a plurality of plate-like solar cells 1 .
  • the solar cell is made of a crystalline semiconductor including, for example, a single crystal silicon or polycrystalline silicon with a thickness of approximately 0.15 mm and has a substantially square shape with one side of 125 mm.
  • the thickness, size and the like are not limited to those and a solar cell with another configuration may be used.
  • an n-type region and a p-type region are formed to form a semiconductor junction for generating an electric field for carrier separation in an interface portion between the n-type region and the p-type region.
  • front electrode 11 is formed on a surface on a light-receiving side (front side) of solar cell 1
  • back electrode 12 is formed on a surface of the back side.
  • front electrode 11 includes a plurality of finger electrodes 110 formed in parallel to one another. For example, approximately 55 finger electrodes 110 are formed with a finger electrode width of approximately 100 ⁇ m and a pitch of approximately 2 mm.
  • tabs 20 as wiring members are connected with finger electrodes 110 at right angles.
  • Bus bar electrodes 111 are provided on front electrode 11 at positions where tabs 20 are to be connected. Bus bar electrodes 111 are electrically connected with all finger electrodes 110 .
  • Bus bar electrodes 111 are each formed in the form of a zigzag line in order to have preferable properties of bonding with tabs 20 and provide preferable electric connection between finger electrodes 110 and tabs 20 .
  • back electrode 12 is formed on a surface portion on a back side of solar cell 1 .
  • Back electrode 12 includes a plurality of finger electrodes 120 formed in parallel to one another. For example, approximately 217 finger electrodes 120 are formed with a finger electrode width of approximately 100 ⁇ m and a pitch of approximately 0.5 mm.
  • Bus bar electrodes 121 are provided on back electrode 12 at positions where tabs 20 are to be connected. Bus bar electrodes 121 are electrically connected with all finger electrodes 120 .
  • Bus bar electrodes 112 are each formed in the form of a zigzag line in order to have preferable properties of bonding with tabs 20 and provide preferable electric connection between finger electrodes 120 and tabs 20 .
  • Such front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 can be formed by screen painting of a thermosetting or heat burning silver paste, for example. Instead of this, they may be formed using other methods such as a deposition, sputtering, and plating method.
  • dots depicted in a region where bus bar electrodes 111 ( 121 ) and finger electrodes 110 ( 120 ) are connected with tabs 20 schematically show spots where vertex portions of tabs 20 bite the electrodes, which is described later. Also, dots depicted in tabs 20 in FIG. 3 schematically show spots where vertex portions bite the electrodes. Tabs 20 have such a small width that angled portions of bus bar electrodes 111 can be exposed from tabs 20 . Accordingly, tabs 20 and bus bar electrodes 111 are easily aligned with each other.
  • tabs 20 are connected on top of front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 .
  • a width of tab 20 is approximately 1.5 mm.
  • the number of finger electrodes 110 of front electrode 11 is set smaller than the number of finger electrodes 120 of back electrode 12 .
  • a thickness of finger electrode 110 of front electrode 11 is set larger than a thickness of finger electrode 120 of back electrode 12 , so that resistance in front electrode 11 can be decreased.
  • solar cell characteristics can be further enhanced.
  • FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the A-A′ line in FIG. 1 .
  • tabs 20 as wiring members are electrically connected with front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 4 .
  • Resin member 3 is used for connecting tabs 20 with front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 .
  • an anisotropic conductive resin member may be used as resin member 3 .
  • An anisotropic conductive resin member includes at least a resin adhesive component and conductive particles dispersed therein.
  • the resin adhesive component includes a composition containing a thermosetting resin.
  • Resins usable as the resin adhesive component are, for example, epoxy resins, phenoxy resins, acryl resins, polyimide resins, polyamide resins, polycarbonate resins, urethane resins, and the like.
  • thermosetting resins one kind or a combination of two or more kinds of resins are used, and a preferable thermosetting resin is made of one or more kinds of resins selected from the group consisting of epoxy resins, phenoxy resins, and acryl resins.
  • conductive particles used are, for example, metal particles such as gold particles, silver particles, copper particles and nickel particles, or conductive particles, such as gold plating particles, copper plating particles or nickel plating particles in which the surfaces of conductive or insulating core particles are coated with a conductive layer such as a metal layer.
  • resin member 3 is disposed between front and back electrodes 11 , 12 and tab 20 .
  • Resin member 3 may have the same or smaller width than a width of tab 20 to be connected.
  • the width of resin member 3 is set to 0.5 mm to 3 mm, or slightly smaller, corresponding to the width of tab 20 .
  • three tabs 20 each having a width of 1.2 mm are used as shown in FIG. 1 . Accordingly, three resin members 3 each having a width corresponding to the width of tab 20 are disposed on positions where tabs 20 are to be bonded. Note that resin member 3 may have a larger width than the width of tab 20 if resin member 3 has translucency even after being cured by heat.
  • tab 20 includes copper thin plate 20 a as a core and silver layer 20 b provided on the surface of tab 20 .
  • Silver layer 20 b forms a layer harder than front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 .
  • Tab 20 is provided with fine corrugations on at least one side thereof and has a height of approximately 10 to 50 um in vertex portions of the corrugations.
  • Tab 20 shown in FIG. 6 is provided with fine corrugations on one side and a flat surface on the other side. This type of tab is called a single-side-corrugated tab.
  • Tab 20 shown in FIG. 10 is provided with fine corrugations on both sides. This type of tab is called a double-side-corrugated tab.
  • the corrugations of the tab can be formed by using grooves extending in a longitudinal direction of tab 20 , many pyramid-shaped projections formed on the surface, or the like.
  • Tab 20 in which silver layer 20 b is provided on the surface having the fine corrugations is pressed against resin member 3 , and is heated while being pressed to cure resin member 3 by heat, so that tab 20 is connected with front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 .
  • tab 20 is placed on each of resin members 3 provided on both sides of solar cell 1 in such a manner that one end side of tab 20 is connected with front electrode 11 on the light-receiving surface side of certain solar cell 1 and the other end side is connected with back electrode 12 on the back side of another solar cell neighboring certain solar cell 1 .
  • solar cell 1 is prepared ( FIG. 13A ) and resin members 3 are placed on front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 of solar cell 1 ( FIG. 13B ). Then, solar cell 1 placed on heat block 6 , for example, is pressed using another heat block 6 with a pressure of approximately 0.05 to 1.00 MPa, for example, and thereby tab 20 is pressed toward solar cell 1 with resin members 3 interposed in between ( FIG. 13C ). Then, high-temperature heating is performed with a temperature of heat block 6 set high for thermosetting of a resin adhesive component of resin member 3 , for example, a temperature between 120° C. and 200° C., both inclusive. Thus, fix tabs 20 are fixed by compression bonding, so that solar cells 1 are electrically connected and arranged ( FIG. 13D ).
  • Solar cell 1 is heated under pressure in a direction toward solar cell 1 from above tabs 20 disposed on resin member 3 .
  • the surface region of silver layer 20 b of tab 20 remains harder than front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 .
  • the vertex portions (projection portions) of tab 20 bite front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 , and tab 20 is bonded to front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 by resin member 3 .
  • silver layer 20 b having the vertex portions causes the electrodes (bus bar electrodes 111 , 121 ) formed of a solidified epoxy resin mainly containing silver particles to bite both of front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 .
  • second solar cell 1 is placed on tabs 20 and is fixed with light pressure. Then, the bonding is performed in the same procedures as the above. A desired number of solar cells 1 are joined to one another to form a string, and consequently a solar cell module is formed.
  • the warpage of solar cell 1 is considered to occur due to a difference in linear expansion coefficient between tab 20 and solar cell 1 . Since such warpage is proportional to temperature, a higher temperature applied to tab 20 and solar cell 1 is likely to cause larger warpage of solar cell 1 . Accordingly, it can be said that the most effective way to reduce the warpage of solar cell 1 is adhesive bonding at a low temperature.
  • the solar cell module according to the embodiment uses resin member 3 capable of bonding at a lower temperature than an alloy bonding by soldering, stress due to the warpage on front and back surfaces of solar cell 1 can be made smaller and occurrence of the warpage can be prevented.
  • an anisotropic conductive resin member is shown as an example of resin member 3 in the above-described embodiment, but one not containing conductive particles can be used as resin member 3 .
  • resin member 3 part of the surfaces of front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 is brought into direct contact with the surface of tabs 20 , and thereby front and second electrodes 11 and 12 and tabs 20 are electrically connected with each other. Even in this case, silver layer 20 b of tab 20 bites front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 , and thus sufficient electric connection can be obtained.
  • the plurality of solar cells 1 connected with each other by tabs 20 are sandwiched between translucent sealing material sheets such as EVA, and then placed between a front member made of glass and a back member made of a weather resistant film or a glass or plastic material. Then, solar cells 1 are sealed by the sealing material between the front member and the back member by a laminator. Consequently, a solar cell module is obtained.
  • translucent sealing material sheets such as EVA
  • FIG. 11 shows that front and back surfaces of neighboring solar cells are connected using a single-side-corrugated tab.
  • the vertex portions face the front side of solar cell 1 and the flat portion faces the back side. Accordingly, the vertex portions of tab 20 on the front side bite electrode 11 .
  • the tab 20 does not bite back electrode 12 on the back side of solar cell 1 .
  • FIG. 5 shows that the front surfaces of two neighboring solar cells 1 are connected with each other and the back surfaces thereof are also connected with each other by tabs 20 .
  • the vertex portions of tab 20 can be cause to bite both of front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 .
  • two neighboring solar cells 1 are connected in parallel and pairs of solar cells 1 arranged in parallel are connected in series.
  • FIG. 8 shows that front and back surfaces of neighboring solar cells are connected using double-side-corrugated tabs.
  • the vertex portions of tabs 20 face both of front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 of solar cell 1 .
  • the vertex portions of tabs 20 on the front and back sides bite both of front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 .
  • FIG. 9 shows that the front surfaces of two neighboring solar cells 1 are connected with each other and the back surfaces thereof are also connected with each other by double-side-corrugated tabs.
  • two neighboring solar cells 1 are connected in parallel and pairs of solar cells 1 arranged in parallel are connected in series.
  • a solar cell module of the embodiment and a solar cell module of a reference example are prepared and a temperature cycling test is performed.
  • the temperature cycling test is performed under the conditions in which a temperature is raised from ordinary temperature to 90 ⁇ 2° C., then lowered to ⁇ 40° C. ⁇ 3° C., and returned to the ordinary temperature, each of upper limit temperature and lower limit temperature is maintained for 10 minutes or longer, one cycle is 6 hours or shorter, a temperature change rate is set at 87° C./hour both in temperature increasing and decreasing processes. This temperature cycling is repeated at 400 cycles. As shown in FIG.
  • the reference example uses as tab 20 one provided with tin coating layer 20 b as a soft conductive body on the surface of copper foil 20 a , and is connected with front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 by using the aforementioned anisotropic conductive adhesive.
  • tab 20 coated with tin is not provided with corrugations.
  • a single-side-corrugated tab provided with silver layer 20 b is used on the front side and tin coating layer 20 b as a soft conductive body covering the surface of copper foil 20 a is provided on the back side.
  • both sides of one solar cell 1 are connected with relevant tabs 20 , and then solar cell 1 is sandwiched between translucent sealing material sheets such as EVA and placed between a front member made of glass and a back member made of a weather resistant film. Then, the solar cell is sealed by the sealing material between the front member and the back member by the laminator.
  • translucent sealing material sheets such as EVA
  • Table 1 shows results of performing the test of 400 thermal cycles.
  • Table 1 shows a decreasing rate based on output values in a conventional example and example 1. Note that the decreasing rate is normalized by using the reference example as 1. From Table 1, it can be seen that the decreasing rate even after 400 thermal cycles is greatly decreased to 0.44, owing to the configuration in which silver layer 20 b of tab 20 bites front electrode 11 .
  • Example 1 and example 2 of the embodiment are prepared and examined by the test of 600 thermal cycles.
  • Example 2 uses double-side-corrugated tabs 20 and silver layer 20 b bites both of front electrode 11 and back electrode 12 as shown in FIG. 10 .
  • Table 2 shows the results.
  • a decreasing rate is shown based on output values in the examples. Note that the decreasing rate is normalized by using example 1 as 1. From Table 2, it can be seen that use of a double-side-corrugated tab 20 is more effective because the decrease rate even after 600 thermal cycles is 0.74 with respect to the one using single-side tab 20 .
  • the tab bites the front electrode and back electrode as described above. This configuration is considered to generate anchor effects to suppress the movement of the tab in thermal expansion or thermal contraction of the tab, and thereby to enhance the reliability against temperature change.
  • Solar cells usable as solar cell 1 in the embodiment include, for example, a solar cell having a so-called HIT (registered trademark) structure in which a non-crystalline silicon layer is stacked on a surface of a crystalline silicon substrate, or a normal crystalline or thin-film solar cell.
  • HIT registered trademark
  • bus bar electrodes 111 , 121 in the above-described embodiment are each formed in the form of a zigzag line, but the invention can be applied to even a case where bus bar electrodes are in the form of a straight line.
  • the electrode includes finger electrodes and bus bar electrodes.
  • the invention can be applied even in a solar cell only having finger electrodes as an electrode.
  • the material for the tab is a copper foil in the description of the embodiment, any material having low electric resistance can be used for the tab. Besides copper, iron, nickel, silver or a combination thereof can provide similar effects.
  • the core and the surface are formed of different materials.
  • the invention can be applied to a tab in which the core and the surface are formed of a same material.
  • the embodiments can provide a solar cell module with high reliability in which a portion of a wiring member bites an electrode to maintain tab strength even in thermal cycles.
  • the embodiments of solar cell module and solar cell module manufacturing method enhance a solar cell output by preventing a wiring member from peeling off in thermal cycles.

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